My new variety of lily plant originated as a seedling selected from a group of seedlings at Gresham, Oreg. The seedlings were planted as a part of a breeding program carried on by me since the year 1965. This program had as its objective the production of upright Asiatic lilies having an intense red color, heretofore unknown in this division of hybrid lilies.
I achieved the desired objective by using as a seed parent Lilium X `Sunspot` and as the pollen parent Lilium X `Byam's Ruby`.
This new lily plant is characterized by a flower of the deepest, most intense blood red color in the division of genus Lilium to which it belongs. In this respect it is vastly superior to such lily varieties as Lilium `Tabasco` and Lilium `Cinnabar`. Its color is one of the most intense yet seen in non-pendant lilies, and, unlike most scarlet lilies, its appearance is not altered by artificial light. The flowers are large, having a diameter of about 6 inches and grow in clusters of numerous blooms. They hold their color until the tepals drop.
In addition, the plant is a good propagator, highly resistant to disease and tolerant to virus infection. It possesses all of the desired characteristics of excellence of form, color and habit. The clone is vigorous and a good grower and propagator, as observed at Gresham, Oreg.
My new variety of lily plant has been asexually reproduced by me and under my direction at Gresham, Oreg. Successive generations produced by bulb scale reproduction and natural propagation from bulblets have demonstrated that the novel and distinctive characteristics of my new variety are fixed and hold true from generation to generation.